R L S Associates Architects

My husband and I can't say enough good things about our experience with Larry. We hired him to design our new home and we were happy with him through every step of the process. He took our vision and quickly turned it into reality. He is so easy to work with and he is a true professional. He helped us out with questions throughout the build and he is affordable. You should not think twice about hiring Larry to help with your project.

When we decided to build a new house, our builder recommended Larry Stephens, who he had worked with on several projects including our neighbor’s house that was severely damaged by fire. Since I knew they were completely happy with their remodel/addition and could see for myself the stunning results, I didn’t hesitate to contact him. Larry told me from the start that he did not consider his designs “sacred”, and that our ideas and needs would always be most important. This was particularly important to me as someone who had very strong ideas from the start. I appreciated Larry’s willingness to make my ideas work and was particularly impressed with his ability to incorporate striking features that I could not have envisioned. He was always accessible for questions and to incorporate my endless “tweaks” as I pondered the design. Our house is in the final stages of completion and we couldn’t be happier with the results. He has my full endorsement!

I needed to create an office space in a screened in porch area. Larry did a superb job of working within the design specifications from our homeowner's association to give me a light and spacious workplace. Larry also recommended an excellent contractor who completed the project on time and within our budget. I highly recommend Larry for residential projects.

My wife and I were looking for a professional to design an addition to our 55 year old Cape Cod home. We hired Larry after meeting with a few architects. Larry was extraordinarily easy to work with. He was prompt with scheduling meetings and his work was timely and very well done. He listened to our wants and needs and created a functional space that is beautiful and practical. His style was friendly and professional, and we have no reservations recommending his work.

I was so pleased with RLS architects, I decided to write another positive review. Everything was completed ahead of schedule, exceeded our expectations, and for a reasonable fee. I would strongly recommend them for any project.

This review is being written about a complete new home build project at a point a little over half way complete (framing completed, brick work and internal rough-ins in progress and more than half completed) Larry Stephens (of RLS Associates Architects) was hired by us to design our new home. We had a conceptual idea and a self created draft (using a computer home architect type software program) of the main design elements that we wanted for a location that has an outstanding long range view. Larry's design, brought together our key ideas - a prow-styled main/Great Room, and a large Octagonal structure with a 270 degree panorama to facilitate the views - into a design that was both workable and aesthetically pleasing. Since this house is in a rural area, another design goal of our project was to have a large house but one that was not imposing or out of character with the surrounding area from the street view, and Larry's design accomplished this better that we expected. The larger face of the house faces the rear / view side and takes full advantage of the views with large window walls, and the front and side faces of the house viewable at closer distances from the street access is more in scale with the original 1-1/2 story farm house that our new house replaced, and the surrounding area. Larry Stephens was very easy and very efficient to work with - the basic exterior design did not need to be modified significantly from his first design (although we did have a preliminary layout to start with), and most of the changes we made afterward were minor interior layout changes. Larry's fees were very reasonable to start, and Larry always answered questions quickly by email or phone. We hired Larry after the design phase for Construction Administration, and this was the more valuable part of our experience working with him. Since we self-contracted this project, and did not have experience with a complete new home build project prior to this, Larry's expertise was invaluable in dealing with hundreds of questions that came up, both questions we posed or questions the contractor's raised that we could not answer without the assistance of someone with more experience. Larry did not charge us by the question either, I am sure he spent many hours in total over the term of the project (to date) responding to our questions which he did not bill for. We found that many contractors are either wary of working with, or just outright refuse to work with an architect. Our framing contractor said he would have no problem with working with an architect (which is one reason we hired him), but once the project was started, he initially did not want to talk directly with the architect, and was having me work as the go between to get various questions answered. Once I finally got the contractor to talk directly with Larry, he told me tat Larry was very reasonable and easy to work with and just contacted him directly with questions after that. My observation of Larry's interaction with our contractor's is that he respects their knowledge of their craft and is very open to understanding and accommodating various methods different contractors bring to the project. As a result, we have had a very smooth running project with no major disagreements. Overall, the services of Larry Stephens was the best money spent on our project with respect to the value received. Not only were our questions answered quickly, we were confident that they were both structurally sound and in compliance with building codes, and we have had no issues (to date) with any code compliance or inspections. I will update this review at completion of the project if it is possible to do so. UPDATE: September 2016 I should have mentioned in the original (unedited) review above that I am the owner and builder (General Contractor, & designer/installer of all Audio/Video and Data systems), and was under no time pressure to complete the project, as this home is being constructed as a 2nd / country home and eventual retirement home. This home was largely completed with occupancy permit issued in September 2015, and focus of work from then to this update has been on exterior hardscape and landscaping projects. While some landscaping details and hardscape issues (like finished driveways) are still incomplete, the property is now presentable enough to be able to post photos, which have now been added here.

We are thrilled with the results of our collaboration with Larry Stephens, owner of RLS Associates Architects. Larry helped us design an extensive addition on our 80-year-old stone home -- one that expertly addressed complex roof-line challenges and maintained the historical integrity of the house. Larry was wonderful to work with. He listened to our initial ideas and, over time, helped us refine our vision to create a usable, beautiful and integrated space. I especially appreciated how he tactfully pushed back on some of our suggestions when he knew they would not align with our overall project goal. He was never rude or dismissive, but rather provided thoughtful counsel to support his perspective. We could not be more pleased with the finished project. With Larry's architectural design help, we combined an existing kitchen and dining room into one large, beautiful and functional kitchen, added a stunning dining room with custom-built wood trusses, a guest room and bath and an upper and lower mudroom area. He did not balk when, after the project construction had already begun, we asked him to design a covered rear patio. It is gorgeous. Larry was extremely accessible and accommodating, visiting the construction site as the work progressed and offering his help when needed. On our project, we worked with a construction contractor and a kitchen designer. Larry seamlessly worked with these professionals to ensure our project ran smoothly and efficiently. After collaborating with Larry over a period of several years, and after an intensive construction period, we are pleased and proud to say we consider Larry a friend. We would enthusiastically recommend him to anyone looking for a top-notch, professional architect.

Larry is a wonderful partner to have on your construction projects. He is collaborative, a great listener, patient, creative and he follows through. When my family was facing a major health crisis that would require making changes to our home, he was the first person we called....and he saw us through the very end of our project.